China’s Belt and Road investment up 12 percent in 2018 Jan-Aug

China’s foreign direct investment in 55 countries covered by the Belt and Road initiative increased 12 percent year-on-year in the first eight months of the year, official figures showed on Thursday.

The value of investment stood at US$9.58bn, accounting for 12.9 percent of the China’s total outbound investment from January to August, according to data released by China’s Ministry of Commerce.

The growth rate for Belt and Road investment was higher than the 7.8 percent year-on-year increase recorded for the country’s overall outbound direct investment in the period.

The Belt and Road initiative is Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature foreign policy plan and aims to increase trade and infrastructure investment in some 70 countries from Asia to Europe and Africa.

Barring a steep drop at the end of the year, China’s investment in Belt and Road countries is on track to reach previous years' levels, which according to official data reached US$14.4bn last year and US$14.5bn in 2016.

However, while Chinese companies have been encouraged to invest in and do business with Belt and Road countries, the initiative has met with a push back in some Asian countries over the past couple of months.